Don't you want me?
by love-the-lamb
Summary: Quinn Fabray,  who is in a relationship with the new quarterback, Sam Evans,  hasn't set eyes on her baby girl, Beth, since she gave her up a year ago.  Now, Quinn begins to regret this decision and chance to change her mind comes around.
1. Chapter 1

It was a year ago today that Quinn Fabray gave birth. A year ago today that she had given up her beautiful baby, Beth. Quinn couldn't believe a whole year had flown by already, that her child was a year old. She had only held Beth once and she hadn't seen her since she had walked out of that hospital one year ago. Parts of Quinn regretted giving Beth up but parts of her were also glad she let her go. In terms of where she was on the high school ladder, it was the best decision she could have made. In the past year she had been reinstated as head cheerleader and was now dating the new, extremely cute quarterback; Sam Evans. Quinn had her popularity back, people parted like the red sea when she walked down the hallways, she was top of the chain so could now do as she wished within the walls of McKinley. Despite all of this she could not shake that feeling that she should be a part of Beth's life. Had she made a mistake giving her up for adoption? Quinn didn't want to think about it anymore, at least not today, so she concentrated on putting her books back in her locker before glee club, but it seemed that Puck had other ideas.

"Quinn!" he called from down the hallway. He did a half jog towards her that left girls drooling all around him. Quinn, however, was not fazed. She and Sam were in a great place at the moment, she did not need things like Puck interfering with that. "What you doing tonight?" he asked casually leaning on the locker next to hers.

"Going out with Sam, why?" she replied vaguely, not really paying him any attention. She knew where this was going and she had already made up her mind.

"Cause... I was wondering if you wanted to come to Breadsticks with me... y'know, to celebrate"

"Celebrate what, Puck?" Quinn was raising her voice. Could Puck not even be slightly sensitive to this topic, she thought. "To celebrate the fact I went through nine months of hell! To celebrate the fact I went through the most painful experience of my life to hold her once! Once!" she was shouting now, but she didn't care. The hall was pretty much empty anyway and she was too infuriated to be bothered about what anybody else thought. "I don't think so Puck. What you need to do is stay away from me, I'm with Sam now!" Quinn slammed her locker and stormed off. She felt that all too common feeling of those warm tears coming to her eyes. Quinn didn't think she would be quite this affected by today, she thought giving Beth up meant she didn't have to deal with any of this anymore. Quinn had never felt so wrong in her life.

* * *

><p>"Okay, guys." Will Schuester said, clapping his hands together. He did a quick scan of the choir room and noticed a couple of the glee clubbers faces were missing. "Anyone seen Quinn and Sam today?" he asked with a tone of curiosity.<p>

"She wasn't at cheerios practice..." Santana added absentmindedly whilst checking her nails.

"And Sam wasn't at football practice either, Coach Beiste was pissed. They're probably together..." Finn added genuinely looking concerned.

"Well nothing we can do about it now," Will continued, "so I guess we will just get on with it." He grappled his whiteboard pen and glided over to the whiteboard. "Any suggestions for our Nationals set list? Well done on winning Regional's but we really need to step up if we want to win in New York. So anybody?"

Rachel stood up in a way which was much more dramatic than needed. Puck rolled his eyes. She made her way to the front as she spoke. "I have a little something I have prepared that I would like to share"

"Knock yourself out, Rachel..." Will said, taking a seat next to Kurt. It was going to be a long hour and he really was curious about where Quinn and Sam were. While Rachel belted out notes, Will mused over it. Suddenly he remembered, Regional's was a year ago today – it was Beth's birthday. Will's heart went out to Quinn; this must be really hard on her.

* * *

><p>As it turned out, Sam and Quinn were not together. Quinn was at home in her bedroom, sat on the floor crying. She thought about Beth, what she would be doing today on her first birthday with Shelby. She grabbed her mobile and dialled Sam's number, really needing someone to pour out her troubles onto. Straight to answer phone. Great, she thought, but she waited until the beep and began to talk. "Sam, I need you." She was going to tap the red phone but found herself blurting everything out. "Beth's going to hate me, I know it. She is going to ask about me one day and find out I abandoned her and hate me. She will feel unloved; feel like I don't like her. That's not true Sam, she will never know how much I love her, and it's my entire fault. I don't know what to do. Call me back soon and I love you, Sam." Quinn hung up the phone, hugged her knees and sobbed into her hands, begging for this day to be over. Praying that tomorrow will bring less pain.<p> 


	2. Chapter 2

A couple of days later Quinn and Sam were strolling down the hallway hand in hand. "Sorry I wasn't there the other day when you needed me," he was saying to her, "I was trying to find a job, y'know, for a little extra cash…"

"Its fine, Sam. It was just really hard to think Beth was there celebrating her birthday without me. And, it kinda still is but I feel better, I can learn to move on from this, I can."

Sam brushed his lips against the top of her head, then lifted his and began to speak again. "She's not going to hate you, Quinn. She is in a great place with Shelby, just believe that." Quinn nodded and they walked the rest of the way down the hallway in silence. That was, until, Mercedes approached them.

"Quinn, can I ask you something" she said, looking at the couple.

"Sure..." Quinn replied, slightly confused, before Sam kissed her on the cheek and strolled off towards a bunch of jocks. Mercedes began talking whilst falling in step with Quinn.

"I've missed us, Quinn. Ever since you moved out of my house last year we have been growing apart and I want to be like we were." Before Quinn could reply she continued speaking, "So, I was thinking we could do a duet together in glee cause I'm tired of Rachel getting all the solo's. What the club needs is a mix of your _stunning_ voice and my chocolate thunder." Quinn smiled at this, the first smile in a while, and nodded.

"Sure," Quinn began, "I've missed us too and I would love to sing with you, Mercedes. When do you want to ask Mr. Schue?"

"How about tonight after your cheerios practice? I have to stay behind anyway to see a teacher." Mercedes and Quinn agreed to meet then and go to talk to Will.

* * *

><p>In cheerios practice later that day Quinn was feeling a lot better. She was putting everything she had into her flips and turn off's and Coach Sylvester was looking impressed. "Q!" Sue screamed, "That was excellent. The rest of you; sloppy! Hit the showers." Santana scowled at Quinn. Ever since Quinn got put back onto the squad Santana was getting ignored and she hated it. As Santana walked past Quinn on the way to the door she gave her a little nudge. It took everything Quinn had not to retaliate; she did not want to have to deal with anything which may get her down, including a fight, which is why she just carried on walking.<p>

When Quinn walked out of the locker room, Mercedes was waiting. She gave her a big smile which was returned and the two began to walk to the choir room where Will's office was. When they got there they could here Will talking to someone and the door was closed. The conversation did not sound too intense so they decided that Mercedes would knock on the door just to let Mr. Schue know they were there.

"Come in" Will said when there had been a knock on the door. Mercedes entered the room first closely followed by Quinn. They quickly saw that the person he had been talking to was none other than Shelby Corcoran and immediately after seeing her, Quinn's stomach tightened. Surprised to see them both in his office, Will began to say something when Quinn looked down a saw a one year old girl sat on the floor playing; Beth. Quinn drew in a sharp breath and her hand rushed up to cover her mouth. She felt light headed and everything around her began to blur. She could hear Mr. Schue's voice and Mercedes calling her name but she took nothing in. Instead, she turned and ran out of the office, tears rolling ruthlessly down her face. She ran as far as he could before she had to stop and lean against some lockers. Her legs crumpled beneath her and she was sat on the floor sobbing. She felt pain and regret and hurt. She felt as if she could faint at any second and she just wanted to rewind to 5 minutes ago when she had been finally happy. After Quinn had sat there for about 10 minutes crying into her hands which held her face Will approached her.

"Quinn?" he asked, walking towards her, face full of concern. He sat down beside her and the empty hallway was silent for a few seconds. "Quinn, I'm sorry. I shouldn't agreed to meet Shelby in the school. I shouldn't have assumed you wouldn't come..." Again, they sat in silence for a few minutes with the only sound being Quinn's delicate sobbing. After a while she lifted her head a lent it against the lockers, she was still crying but more quieter now.

"Where is... where are they?" she whispered between sobs.

"Shelby has left and Mercedes wanted to make sure you were okay but her mom came to pick her up so she had to leave too. Quinn, is there anything I can do for you?

Suddenly she burst into a whole new round of tears, "Why me?" she cried. Not knowing what to do, Will put his arm around her and let her lean on his shoulder.

"You've been through so much, Quinn. And you are strong enough to get through this." And that is how they sat for as long Quinn needed it.


	3. Chapter 3

"It's just that I feel like every time I begin to feel happier, something happens to make my life miserable again" Quinn told Emma. They were sat in Emma's office having a counselling session – Sam had convinced her to make an appointment with the guidance counsellor after a week of her feeling depressed after seeing Beth. Quinn was so grateful for Sam, especially in the last week. He was doing everything he could to make her feel better, he was there when all she wanted to do was cry, he was always there to listen when she needed it and he was always saying the right things or doing things just to make her feel better.

Quinn tried to seem happier for Sam. She didn't want him to feel like his efforts weren't appreciated, they were and she loved him for being so sweet but she just couldn't stop thinking about Beth and every time she did he mood swooped right back down. She really wanted to feel better, at least for Sam, which is what made her agree to this session with Emma.

"Okay, well could you give me some examples of what makes you feel so sad?" Emma replied with a comforting look on her face.

"Well, I guess the first time was, um, just after I gave Beth up. Then a couple of months ago, my father came back and he… well he basically told me how much of a failure I am. I haven't spoken to him since…" Quinn paused, trying to keep it together, and began speaking again, "and most recently it was Beth's birthday and then, then I saw her in Mr. Schue's office." Quinn turned from the counsellor's gaze trying to hide the tears brimming, once again, at her eyes.

Realising how much she had said and that she was falling apart right in front of Emma, Quinn suddenly felt embarrassed. She put her hands on both armrests and began to push herself up saying, "I'm sorry. I sound so stupid, I'll just leave." Quinn pushed the chair away and began to pick up her red cheerios bag.

"Quinn, please don't leave. I know your upset but that's why I'm h…"

"I really have to go anyway to… to… cheerios practice." And with that Quinn was out of the room. Truth was, she didn't have practice for another hour, and the last lesson hadn't even finished yet. She had gotten permission to skip the lesson to go to the counselling session which was why the hallways were pretty much empty.

She was rounding the corner, planning on skipping the rest of the day and cheerios practice, when she heard someone crying just beyond the row of lockers. Quinn decided to approach and see who it was. When she did, she discovered it was Rachel Berry crouched on the floor, tears rolling down her face. "Rachel…" Quinn said, she and Rachel never had exactly been friends but Quinn could never leave someone crying on the floor. Quinn thought about how she had been feeling lately, how some times she felt like she just couldn't move because she was crying too much and instantly her heart went out to Rachel.

Rachel lifted her head and looked at Quinn whilst she tried to wipe her eyes. "Rachel, what's wrong?"

Rachel looked into Quinn's green eyes; they looked so concerned, like she actually wanted to help. For a moment they just stared at each other while Quinn gave a chance for Rachel to reply. Quinn quickly understood why Rachel was looking at her confused; she had never been nice to Rachel before so why would she believe Quinn now. Instantly she wanted to kick herself for always being so mean to people like Rachel, she had never considered they might have problems just like her. After a few moments of silence, Quinn spoke up again,

"Please, maybe I could help" She tried to keep her voice gentle, "Rachel, just tell me what's wrong… please."

Finally getting her sobs under control, Rachel began to speak up, "I'm fine really. I really should just go" She said whilst indicating to the door with her thumb. And just like Quinn in Emma's office, Rachel was gone before Quinn could say another word.

Quinn was sure that Rachel most certainly was not fine but Quinn didn't think there was much she could do about it know so she turned around and walked to the door which led to the parking lot.

* * *

><p>As the days passed on, Quinn was beginning to feel better. She still felt all of the feelings she had when she saw Beth but she was able to start doing normal things again and she had breakdowns a lot less often. She went back to cheerios (which Sue, for one, was extremely thankful for. She considered Quinn to be her star cheerleader) and her and Sam could actually spend time with each other which didn't solely involve Sam comforting her. Although, on the outside, she seemed better she still was hurting a lot on the inside and this occasionally slipped out.<p>

One evening, around a week later, Quinn and Sam were on Quinn's couch as Judy was out. Quinn was led out with her head on Sam's lap. "Do you know how much I love you?" she said. Just then he reached down and tucked her hair behind her ear.

"Do you know how much I love _you_?" he replied, now stroking her soft cheek with his thumb. "Quinn, I know this has been hard on you but I want you to know that whatever I'm here…"

She turned her head so she was looking up to his face and then she put her finger to his lips to stop him, "shhh" she said. Quinn pushed herself up and moved so she was sat up on his lap facing him, knees either side of his legs. She leant her forehead against his and whispered so close to his face he could feel her warm breath, smell it. 'Thank you… for everything' were her words and then she leant in to kiss him. It was a kiss deeper than Sam had ever experienced with her and this is how he knew that she was truly grateful for what he had been doing for her.

They kissed like that for a while, tongues gliding over each others, and Sam had to stop himself from doing anything more. He had promised Quinn he would never pressure her and he was not going to go break that.

After a while, they both came back to reality and Quinn placed her forehead where it had previously been. "Did I mention that I kinda love you?" she said, grinning. And that was how the evening went, with Quinn happier than Sam had seen in a while.


	4. Chapter 4

The next morning, Quinn was trying to get Sam out of her house without anyone seeing, including her mother who was upstairs sleeping. It wasn't like anything had happened between the two of them that night but to anyone who may have seen Sam running out of her house early morning it may have looked just a little suspicious. Truth was, Sam couldn't be bothered to leave in the evening and Quinn hadn't wanted him to go so he had slept on the floor next to Quinn's bed.

"Shhhh" she was saying as they tiptoed down the stairs, "Do you _want_ to wake my mother up?" With that Sam displayed a mock-scared face, Judy did not particularly care for Quinn's new boyfriend and Sam generally tried to keep his distance because of this. Quinn was giggling uncontrollably by the time they made it to the front door, as it turned out sneaking around was quite fun, and she reached up to quickly peck him on the lips. When she was about an inch from his face, he grabbed her around the waist and began tickling her.

"Get off" she screamed, giggling. She lightly shoved his chest with her hands but he just scooped her up so she was caught up in his embrace. Quinn was trying to be quiet but she just couldn't keep her laughing under control. Glancing up at Sam she saw he was grinning ear to ear, and so was she. Once her breathing was under control, Sam leant down and kissed her and then gently placed her back on her feet.

Quinn opened the door and stepped out of the way, letting Sam out. "Love you" she whispered, remembering her mother was upstairs.

"Love you" he replied, smiling.

"Now go!" Quinn said, playfully shoving him out the door with a huge grin on her face.

She tiptoed back upstairs and by the time she got to her room she was still smiling. And after she had changed into her cheerio's uniform complete with the promise ring Sam had given her a few weeks before, she was still smiling.

For once she was feeling really happy but something was still bothering her; Rachel hadn't been to school since their encounter in the hallway which was over a week ago. It was really nagging at Quinn's brain and nobody in glee club knew why she Rachel absent and nobody knew how upset Quinn had seen her. She had decided that if Rachel was a no-show again today, she was going to find out why.

* * *

><p>"Have a good day sweetie" Judy was saying as Quinn stepped out of the car later that morning.<p>

"Mom, you didn't need to drive me to school. I could have come myself or Sam could have picked me up"

"I wanted to Quinny, and you can't spend all your time with Samuel anyway"

"Okay, whatever, Mom. See you later." And with that she slammed the door and walked in the direction of her locker. Whilst she walked, she scanned the area for Rachel but could not see her and when she peeked in the choir room, she was not there either. Quinn decided it was time to get to the bottom of Rachel Berry's absence.

Tightening her pony tail, she strode down the hallway looking for either her boyfriend or for Finn. The first of the two she spotted was the latter and she approached him, staying a distance away until he had finished his conversation with some other jocks. While Quinn waited for him, she looked around the hallway. She watched people she didn't know the name of talk to each other, walk to their home rooms and that were when she realised that she was so caught up in her popularity that she never bothered to get to know anybody else.

Suddenly Quinn felt awful. Everybody knew her name but she knew nothing about all these people around her, she was too set on being on top. _No wonder people like Rachel don't believe me when I ask if they're okay_, she thought. Right there, right then, Quinn realised she had to find out what was making Rachel so upset, let her know she wasn't completely heartless.

Finn finally finished his conversation and turned around to find Quinn standing right by him. By this, he was a little taken aback. It's not like they never talked (even after the baby drama), it was just that he had no idea why she would want to talk to him about anything now. Quinn's request, however, shocked Finn even more.

"Finn," she began, "could I maybe have Rachel's address please?"

"Um, sure. But why? I mean you two aren't exactly…" Quinn raised an eyebrow at him, challenging him.

"What I mean is, you've never needed it before so why now?" he asked.

"I just do, okay? So can I please have it Finn?"She asked as politely as she could whilst spotting Sam down the hallway talking to some freshmen. _Probably teaching them Na'vi_, she thought and grinned to herself. Suddenly she remembered Finn was standing there and she drew her attention back to him but he was already jotting down the address on a scrap piece of paper. After he was done, Quinn thanked him as he handed her the paper and she began to walk over to Sam when Finn's voice stopped her.

"Wait…" he said, "you're not going to, like, kill her are you?"

Quinn couldn't tell if he was joking or not so she just smiled and shook her head then made her way towards the best looking guy around, Sam.

When Quinn reached him he was still taking to the freshman so she just said 'Hey Sam' and linked her soft hands with his. As it turned out, Sam and his 'new friends' were talking about Avatar so she stood and waited until they left. As soon as they had walked away she wrapped her arms around his neck.

"I missed you Samuel." She said.

"I missed you too but um, didn't I see you, like, two hours ago" he replied smiling at her glowing face.

"Two hours with my Mom is a long, long time." Quinn commented rolling her green eyes.

"Understood." He said and then leant in to place his lips on hers just as Mr. Schue walked past.

The teacher enthusiastically strode by them saying, "See you in glee club guys. Don't be late!" After walking a few steps he turned back around and pointed at Quinn, "Glad to see you're back to your normal self, Quinn" he said smiling at the couple.

* * *

><p>"Okay, I'm just gonna say it," Santana began saying later that day as glee club was drawing to a close, "it is way too quiet without Rachel."<p>

"It's true" Kurt added, in a matter of fact way. "There haven't been any selfish comments, random outbursts or storm outs in a whole week. It's slightly eerie."

"Yes, okay. I know Rachel's absence is hard but we have to carry on, even without her. So, I need everyone to come tomorrow armed with a song which we may be able to use for Nationals. See you then guys!" Will said as picked up escaped sheets of music on the floor. Everyone began to stand up, grab their bags and slowly dribble out the door. Normally, Sam would walk Quinn to her car or he would drive her home but today Quinn had other ideas. She quickly kissed him on the cheek, explained she had to be there and quickly headed out.

Quinn Fabray was on her way to the Berry household.

**Thank you to everybody who has added this story to their favorites and story alerts, it really does mean a lot. I'm new to this so i'm grateful for anybody who even reads it.**

**Please review and give some feedback, it would be very much appreciated :) **


	5. Chapter 5

Checking the piece of paper that Finn had written the address on, Quinn finally found the house she was looking for. She stepped into the driveway and walked up the path to the front door. Once she reached it, Quinn drew in her breath and knocked on the door. Suddenly she was scared. What if one of Rachel's dads opened the door, or both of them? What would she say? Quinn instantly wanted to take her knock on the door back.

Just as Quinn thought about turning back around, the daunting white door opened to reveal a solemn looking Rachel. Relieved that it wasn't one of her dads, Quinn smiled at the girl.

"What are you doing here?" Rachel asked a hint of annoyance in her tone.

"Um, well you weren't at school…" Quinn replied noticing that Rachel's eyes were puffy, as if she'd been crying. When Quinn didn't get a reply, she continued, "I, I wanted to make sure you were okay. I mean, you seemed pretty upset the other day." She wondered why she felt so nervous, she practically ruled over this girl at school and now she could barely get her words out.

Rachel began to come up with an excuse and slowly started to shut the door but Quinn grabbed it, gently pulling it open. "Please." she said softly, "Just let me in and then just tell me what's wrong. I know I'm normally a bitch to you but I promise you, Rachel, I just want to help."

The brunette sighed and wiped her eyes with her finger. Quinn could see her working it through in her mind, considering whether or not to trust her. "Okay," Rachel said stepping aside and leading Quinn into the sitting room. "Take a seat on the couch and I'll be back in a minute." With that she was gone.

Quinn settled herself down on the blue couch and looked around. It was a very homely room; there was a fire place and a lot of photos on the wall. There were a lot of photos of Rachel growing up and professional ones of the whole family in a big white room. It was evident that Rachel's dads loved her and that made jealousy settle in the pit of Quinn's stomach. She wished she had that relationship with her parents, but now she only had her mom, and it wasn't like they even liked each other.

After a few minutes, there were footsteps coming into the room and Quinn turned to see Rachel walk over and then plant herself down on the other end of the couch, leaving a gap between the two of them. "My dad's are out, if you were wondering…" she said, not really looking at the blonde sat to her right.

There was a moment of awkward silence when the two of them didn't really know what to say and Rachel sniffed a couple of times, dabbing her eyes with a tissue. Quinn decided it was time to speak so she opened her mouth but before she could say anything, Rachel spoke up. "I wouldn't be telling you this, Quinn, if you didn't deserve to know but this affects you too so I'm going to tell you." Quinn could tell that Rachel was very upset and was trying to make her voice sound stronger than it really was but instead of saying anything, Quinn just nodded.

Rachel began speaking again, "I found out the news just before you saw me in the hallway that day. Emma called me to her office to tell me, tell, me that…" she paused and struggled to hold in a couple of sobs. She looked into Quinn's caring eyes and willed herself to go on. "She told me that Shelby, my mom, was in a car accident and that, that she went to hospital. They tried to save her, they tried, but she died… She's gone Quinn." Rachel didn't even try to keep it in any longer; she just let it all out, breaking down.

A million thoughts filled Quinn's mind, the majority involving Beth. But instead of thinking about all of that then, she scooted over next to Rachel. Quinn put her arm around Rachel and grabbed her hand with her free one. Slowly relaxing, Rachel let herself lean her head against Quinn's shoulder and let herself cry, really cry.

"It's alright; it's gonna be alright Rachel." And that is how the two of them sat, Rachel's head on Quinn's shoulder, until both of them forgot about time completely. And as Quinn sat, staring into the fireplace whilst occasionally muttering comforts to Rachel, she felt the tears come to her green eyes but she did not fight them this time, she let them silently roll down her face. "Everything is going to be fine" Quinn said, not really believing herself as the words left her lips.

* * *

><p>Quinn needed to know where Beth was. Who was looking after her, what was going on in her life? She just had to know – this was her baby, the life she had carried around for nine months. Quinn was led in bed that night, thinking these things through. She had reluctantly left Rachel's house later that night because she had to get home. She hadn't liked leaving the still upset girl but Rachel assured her that she would be fine.<p>

As Quinn walked out the front door, Rachel stopped her and said something. "I know you've been dying to ask but just so you know, I don't know anything about what's happening with Beth. Sorry." Quinn had noticed that Rachel really did look genuinely sorry so she said a quiet thank you and had left.

Now back in her own house, the thoughts about Shelby and Beth really came. And as she drifted off into a restless sleep, she dreamt that she was in a car accident and in the back seat Beth was nothing but a crumple of bones.


	6. Chapter 6

Quinn stopped walking and looked at Rachel who was standing, nervously, beside her. "You ready?" Quinn asked the brunette. They were almost at the door to the choir room where glee club was already taking place. It was three long days after Quinn had received the news of Shelby's death and this was both of the girls' first day back.

Rachel nodded not really wanting to step into that room. Everyone would be staring at her which normally Rachel would thrive in but this was different. This would be out sympathy rather than out of pure talent. Quinn saw the scared look in the girl's eyes so she grabbed her hand and gave it a light squeeze. "We'll do it together" she said and they took their first step into the room hand in hand.

As soon as the two walked into the room, everyone stared. The majority of jaws dropped open in shock; the sight of Quinn Fabray and Rachel Berry acting like such good friends wasn't something you saw every day. Santana opened her mouth to make a comment but quickly snapped it shut again, clearly too stunned to know what to say.

"Quinn! Rachel!" Will said, nearly shouting in order to cover up the awkwardness lingering in the air. "Glad to have you back" he said still with a confused look locked onto his face. He gestured them to seats and began to speak again. "We were just talking about… about… who was going to sing our opening song at Nationals. Want to offer yourselves?" Both of them shook their heads at this which was an even greater shock to everyone else.

For a while Will just talked to everyone, trying to ignore the fact that everyone in there was more interested in Quinn and Rachel than him. After a few minutes he gave up on the task of keeping their attention so he got them to work in pairs to think about lyrics for original songs. When he was explaining this Quinn leaned closer to Rachel and whispered in a delicate voice, "Can I work with you?" Rachel smiled and nodded.

A while later the girls were working on a verse of a song when Sam interrupted them. "I need to speak to Quinn" he said in a blunt manner. The blonde smoothed down her skirt and stood herself up, a little confused about the mood Sam seemed to be in. Quinn began to walk with him when she stopped in her tracks. She gracefully turned her body around so that she was facing Rachel and, in a quiet(ish) tone so that the whole room wouldn't hear, said, "Are you going to be alright or… do you need me to stay?" Rachel shook her head and waved her arm in the direction of Sam; an indicator that Quinn could leave.

Quinn then turned back around and walked with Sam towards the door attempting to look unaffected by Sam's shunning towards her. They walked in silence until they were out the door and heading down the hallway until they were safely out of earshot of the curious glee club members. For the whole journey there was an awkward silence between that they'd never really experienced with each other before.

Finally they came to halt after what had seemed like, to Quinn, the longest walk of her life. In reality, however, they had only gone about 15 metres. Sam was the first to speak;

"I thought we were meant to be together, Quinn. Why haven't you told me anything that's been going on? We haven't talked in days and you have completely ignored all my phone calls! Y'know, I really thought you meant it all those times when you said you loved me and that you trusted me but to me it seems like you don't trust me at all. You just went running to find help from Rachel. I've been really worried Quinn but it seems you've been having a pretty good time with your knew friend in there."

For a moment Quinn just stood there and stared at her boyfriend. She definitely hadn't expected this outburst and she was feeling, to say the least, pretty furious about it. She looked at the recently cleaned floor to the left and tried to conduct something to say in her head. Quinn opened her mouth and began speaking in a harsh tone, not really knowing what was about to come out of her mouth.

"Why are you being such a _jerk_?"

"Same to you 'little miss perfect'. I'm fed up of me always being there for you and you just shrugging me o…" Sam shouted, using his fingers as quotations before being interrupted by a very angry looking Quinn.

Holding her hands up Quinn cut him off and said in a quieter voice, "You know what, I don't need to explain myself to you." And with that she stormed off back in the direction of glee club rehearsal.

"Quinn! Wait!" she heard from behind her. Quinn turned to see Sam running towards her. He was about to speak but Quinn got in first.

"No! Leave me alone. You have made it very clear you don't want me so don't try and pretend you care about me because you clearly didn't think about how I felt when you thought up that little speech back there" Quinn couldn't remember a time she'd been this furious with Sam, actually, she couldn't remember _ever_ being mad at Sam.

"Quinn please. Just listen. I… I-"

"No, you listen! Do you know how hard this has been on me? And yes, I am sorry I haven't been telling what's going on but,_Sam_, I have had just a few other things on my mind. And I have also been trying to help Rachel who is going through a really hard time right now" She paused and let herself breath; calming herself down. "I'm going back to rehearsal now. I don't care what you do as long as it doesn't involve talking to me." Another pause. Another deep breath. "I hope you're happy now." Quinn walked into glee club and fought to keep those common tears behind barriers once more.

* * *

><p>Quinn was still mad at Sam by the time she got home, after dropping Rachel at her house, but that didn't mean that she didn't hate the fact they were fighting. Normally at times like this, when she felt this alone, she would call Sam and they would talk for hours or he would come round. She couldn't call him this time though and this just made her feel worse.<p>

After moping around the house for a while then eating dinner with her mother, she found herself sat on her bedroom floor not knowing what to do with herself. Quinn opened her top draw and dug around a bit. She was looking for a bar of chocolate that she knew coach Sylvester would kill her for but instead just found various pieces of scrap paper and an Avatar figure Sam had given her a while back. Despite everything, Quinn had to smile at that and after hunting for a bit longer she discovered a pile of photos.

Taking them out of the draw she saw that the first photo was one of Sam and her. It was after Regional's and Sam was holding the camera out in front of their faces. They both had huge grins on their faces and Sam had held his fingers to look like bunny ears above Quinn's head. She giggled to herself as she remembered the occasion.

As she went through the photos she saw many more of Sam and her as well as some with other glee club members. She was getting to the end of the pile when she found one of Puck and her. She smiled at this one also; Puck really was quite sweet. Just as she was turning to the last photo she wondered what it would be of. The whole pile had just been random photos, not in any particular order so it was anyone's guess as to what this one would be.

She moved the one of Puck to the back of the pile and saw it was one of her holding Beth in the hospital. She guessed Puck must have taken it because it was a bit lopsided and a bit blurry from his shaking hands but she could still make it out. As she peered closer she quickly noticed how happy she looked and that a big smile covered her weary face. In the photo Quinn was smiling down at the baby in her arms and it looked as if everything were a happy ending. However, despite what the photo portrayed, it wasn't a happy ending and this got Quinn thinking about her daughter again and about how she still did not know what had happened to her.

Gently, Quinn placed the precious photos back in the draw and shut it in a vain attempt to lock away all the thoughts she didn't want to be thinking. Again she was at loss of what to do with herself so instead of facing up to anything she swiftly changed into her pyjama's and crawled into her bed. But as she willed herself to go to sleep her restless mind kept wandering. She thought of the time when Sam had spend the night and the time she had been lying in the exact same position whispering to Sam on the phone all night. Quinn tossed and turned but eventually she sank into an anxious sleep.

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><p><strong>Please Review! :)<strong>


	7. Chapter 7

It had been a very long day and all Quinn wanted to do now, as she arrived back home from school, was crawl into bed.

The day had started with Spanish class and that happened to be the only class where she sat next to Sam. To say Quinn had been dreading the hour would have been an understatement. She had been early, having not been in the mood to make conversation with anyone out in the hallways before class, so she had settled herself down and waited for the arrival of her maybe boyfriend and Mr Schue. The first to enter the room was the latter and he imminently began the lesson.

"Buenos días, vamos a hablar acerca de las fiestas. Fuimos a la playa" he had started the lesson by saying whilst indicating with his hands for the class to repeat the end statement. Half the class had mumbled the words whilst the other half had just moved their lips in a vain attempt to appear like they were participating.

"Otra vez! Fuimos a la playa!" he'd said again in a louder tone which had got a lousy response of just a few more students mumbling the phrase. In all of this Quinn had sat there and had silently moved her lips while her eyes had subtly kept a watch on the door so they would not miss the arrival of a certain missing boy.

The whole hour had gone by and Sam hadn't showed. Quinn had just sat there absentmindedly for the whole lesson, repeating phrases when necessary and writing down verbs when told but not really caring for what was being taught.

Quinn didn't know how she felt about his absence at the time. A part of her was relieved he was a no-show because she didn't want to experience another fight or have that awkward silence between them that she hated so much but part of her was disappointed she didn't get to see him, to sit by him. No matter how angry she was at him, Quinn still loved his beautiful smile, his kindness, his ability to listen, his cute lips, his hilarity, his avatar obsession and dare she say it, his ridiculous impressions. She just couldn't help that she missed him.

Despite all that, however, Quinn still refused to be the first one to break the awfulness between them. She was not the one who had gone off yelling in the hallway for no good reason so she was determined to wait for _him_, no matter how much it killed her.

For the most part, the rest of the day had been pretty similar with no sightings of Sam at all. That was until she was walking to her car in the parking lot. She had been strolling along whilst texting Rachel, who had taken yet another day off, when she had accidently bumped into someone.

"Oh! Sor-" she had began before looking up and realising the person was none other than Sam Evans. For a moment he just looked at her face with no expression at all, not letting her know how he was feeling, what he thought about her. In a rushed kerfuffle of words she made her mouth blurt something out just so she wouldn't be stood there with him staring a hole in her head.

"Sorry, I, uh, I was just texting, um, Rachel" she waved her phone in her hand to help make sense of her words and immediately realised her mistake once she had said it.

"Rachel, huh?" he paused, "Figures." Sam then brushed past her and walked away, seemingly hardly affected but leaving a very bothered and saddened girl behind.

She had then driven home, without finishing her text to Rachel, and was now unlocking the front door with one thing in her mind; snuggling up in bed. Seemingly, however, Judy didn't grasp on the fact that Quinn wanted to do nothing right now except go up to her room. As soon as Quinn was approached in the lounge by the person in question, she blessed the day when her mother learnt the skill of realising when people wanted to be left alone; much needed in the current situation.

"Quinny." Judy said while taking the Cheerio's jacket out of her daughters hands; a force of habit.

"Hi Mom. Can this wait? I'm really tired." Quinn replied in a very drowsy tone and as she said this she took back the jacket from where it was now folded over her mother's arm.

"It could wait... But it's fairly important and I think you would appreciate knowing this information. Come." Not really giving Quinn a choice, Judy led the way into the kitchen where she picked up a piece of paper off the counter and turned around to face her daughter. "I got a call for you earlier and..." Judy was going to say what the call had been about but as she looked into Quinn's tired eyes and worn out face she decided that letting Quinn see the notes she had made would probably be best for the both of them, "... I wrote down what they said. It took a lot to get them to agree to tell me but I have my ways" she handed Quinn the paper but before letting go she said one last thing, "and Quinn, you don't have to make any decisions immediately."

When Quinn finally got a hold of that stupid piece of paper, she was beginning to get a little worried. Her mother never said things like that and it was leading her to believe that this was more than a call from a friend. She turned the paper over and saw her mother's hand writing scribbled all over it, appearing like she was in a rush to note everything down. She read the first line:

_Adoption Agency_

Just from that one line, Quinn's stomach got tighter. She decided to take a seat on one of the stools before carrying on reading. The rest of the notes were just short scribbles but she was determined to make sense of them, she had to know why they were contacting her.

_Closest relative, best option for minor, Guardian Ad Litem's decision._

_202-556-1212_

Her mother had noted down an address at the bottom also as well as some additional scribbles she couldn't make sense of. Before the initial shock of what she seemed to gather they were saying washed over, she actually felt some love towards her mother. She had taken the time to take a phone call for her and write down the notes she had, even if they were hard to make sense of. Quinn was very grateful for that; she didn't think she'd have been able to get to the end of the phone call if she had taken it; the shock of it would have been too much.

That thought brought Quinn back to reality and suddenly the enormity of it became clearer to her. This call was concerning Beth, her daughter, the person she had thought about every day for a year and now Quinn was getting contacted. She couldn't believe it.

Suddenly Quinn didn't know what to do. Her head darted around, searching for something but she wasn't really sure what, she just needed to take an action. Finally she saw it; the phone. She walked over to it and it wasn't until she took it in her hand that she realised she was shaking. Quinn drew in a breath, shut the door for privacy, and somehow managed to punch the numbers of the adoption agency into the phone. Still with shaking hands, she lifted the phone to her ear and listened to the ringing.

After what seemed like an eternity of ringing, Quinn heard the shrill voice of a women on the other end. "Adoption Assessors. How can I help?"


	8. Chapter 8

**I don't know if any of you have been waiting for an update but if you have I am so sorry it has taken so long. In the future I am going to try and be a little faster. Once again, thank you for any reviews, story alerts, favorites; they really do mean a lot :)**

Just as Quinn was placing the phone back, Judy quietly opened the door and stuck her head in to look at her daughter. Seeing that she had finished the phone call she brought herself in and stood opposite Quinn.

"Did they tell you?" she asked. In reply Judy got a delicate nod from the girl who was sat shocked on the stool.

"Do you know what you might do?"

Quinn looked at her fingernails then looked up at her mother. "I really don't know. I mean, I just got asked if I want my baby back. A child I've only seen for a millisecond since she was born. How can I make this decision?" Quinn looked around the room; the kitchen was so neat and so clean, as it always was. Was there really a place for a one year old here? Would she even still live here if she had Beth? She sighed.

"I don't know, mom. I really have no, no clue." Quinn pushed herself up and began to walk out the kitchen and to her room. On her way out, however, Quinn paused and turned to her mother who was still stood there, at loss with what to say.

"Thank you" And with that Quinn placed a kiss on Judy's cheek, something Quinn could never remember voluntarily doing, and trudged upstairs to the privacy of her room.

Quinn flopped down onto her bed and tried, in a somewhat vain attempt, to figure things out in her head and get closer to a decision she felt she would never be able to make. Time went by but she did not know how long. She just led there, thinking.

Finally, Quinn felt herself move. She managed to reach over to her bedside table and grab her phone from where it had been silently laying. Rolling onto her back she unlocked her phone and began to scroll through her contacts. Quinn didn't know whether her mind knew she would call this particular person or if it were just a spur of the moment decision but before she knew it she was greeting the person on the other end of the line.

"Puck? It's me. I'm sorry I didn't know who else to call" Quinn felt herself breaking apart, she tried to fight it but then she heard the voice on the other end. It was so caring, so sweet and she could hold it in no longer.

"Quinn? What's wrong? Tell me what happened."

"It's Beth"

"Beth." He paused when he said the word. Quinn could hear the lovingness in his voice when he spoke of their daughter but she could also hear the worry of what could have happened. In that moment Quinn thought that she should have given Puck more of a say in what to do with Beth when she was born; he could have been a good father.

"What… what happened to her? Is she okay? Are _you_ okay?" he asked, the concern straining his voice.

"Puck?"

"Yeah? You can tell me Quinn."

"They're asking me if I want her back… if _we_ want her back actually."

"Oh wow. Oh. Did you make a decis-"

"No, I don't know what to do. She's ours but we… we gave her up for a reason right?" Quinn stopped talking and sighed, glancing around her room. Her eyes landed on her clock; "Oh crap! It's really late, I… I didn't realise. Sorry i'll leave you…"

"No!" Puck almost shouted before lowering his voice again, "I mean, I don't mind honestly…"

She replied with a silent nod into the dim light of her bedroom and that is how they stayed; silent. Quinn rolled onto her side and snuggled her face into the pillow, cradling the phone gently to her ear.

After a while of just listening to his breathing she broke the stillness with a question. "Puck, do you think I'd make a good mom?"

"Hell yes! A good one _and _a hot one." Quinn gave a little laugh at that and then heard him continue with a more serious tone. "No seriously Quinn, you're the most caring, loving, gentle person I've ever met, you'd be perfect"

"Thanks." She half whispered feeling a smile on her face and realising this conversation had let some of the pressure of this decision off her shoulders.

With a much lighter tone Puck joked, "Now this isn't just me trying to hit on you, Quinn. I know trouty mouth got his dibs on you… though I still think you're a MILF."

"Well thanks… I guess. And for the record you'd make a good father, a really, really good one."

The conversation went on a little while and then they said their goodbyes and hung up. Once he was gone Quinn looked at the clock again. It really was late; she must have been lying there for ages before the phone call. She snuggled into her bed and let her mind run over everything.

Puck made the whole Beth situation seem so much easier to handle and she was feeling much more light hearted about everything and that in time she could make the best decision for herself, Beth, Puck and… Sam. Sam. Quinn sighed. She hated to think it because it made everything so much more complicated but he was a part of this and he deserved to know what was going on.

Quinn began to feel her eye lids droop and she decided that all these decisions could be made tomorrow and that hopefully it would be an easier task in the light of a new day. Quinn doubted it though, she felt that these next few days would present quite a lot of stress.

**Please review :)**


	9. Chapter 9

As soon as Quinn stepped out her car the next morning she knew something was off. The school parking lot was way too empty and she had a strange feeling settling in the pit of her stomach. Grabbing her cheerios duffel bag from the trunk she locked the car and wandered over to the school entrance with her eyes constantly scanning for what might be different. She saw just a few students walking around, making their ways to their homerooms but she spotted nobody she knew well enough to ask what was going on.

That was until she saw Brittany. "Brit! What's going on? Where is everybody?" she asked, hoping her not-that-bright friend would give her a sensible answer.

"I think there is a fight going on round there but I got bored so I left. Can you tell me what time my watch says, I don't know how to read it..."

"Who? Who is the fight between Brittany?" Quinn replied getting a bit worried about the participants of this fight.

Brittany looked around for a couple of seconds trying to think of her answer and Quinn was getting a little impatient but she tried to calm herself. Finally, Brittany answered; "I think it was Sam and-"

But Quinn didn't need to hear anymore, she was off and running down the hall in hopes of getting to this fight. She could hear Brittany in the behind her asking her to tell her the time again but as much as Quinn wanted to help, she just didn't have time.

The conflict was hard to miss and Quinn knew she was there immediately. It seemed that the majority of the school was watching which would explain the deserted parking lot and hallways. She began to push her way through the crowds of students to get the heart of it all. When she made it to the front, after a few knocks and shoves, all her fears we confirmed; the fight was between Sam and Puck and it looked like Puck had the upper hand.

"Puck! Stop!" she shouted but she barely heard herself over all the commotion. She saw Sam already had a bloody nose; she must have missed quite a lot. Quinn went over to the two and tried to get in the middle of them. "Guys, stop it!" She pushed at Puck's chest, trying to get him to give it up.

"Stop! Please" she said, getting genuinely worried for both of them. Puck was mid punch when he saw the concern in Quinn's eyes and it made him pause for just a second but that was all Quinn needed.

"Please don't do this" she said, in a quieter tone now a lot of the noise had died down. She looked each of them in the eye, one after another. "Don't do this to each other. Don't do this to me. If either one of you gets hurt it will hurt me. Please." The last bit was merely a whisper but it seemed to work and she felt the two boys relax slightly.

Quinn stepped back from them and then remembered all the spectators. She turned around to see who was there and in that split second she looked away Puck lost it. She heard a loud punch, a crack of bone and Sam falling to the ground. She turned around to see just the last part. "Sam!" she screamed.

He led on the floor, clutching his nose from which blood was flowing at a rate Quinn could never remember seeing before in her life. She kneeled down beside him and grabbed his hand. "Sam. Sam, it's going to be alright." Quinn could see he was fighting the urge to scream out loud so she just sat next to him, trying to comfort him. She looked over at Puck and said "I told you to stop. Why didn't you stop?"

Puck gave no reply just looked at her with desperation in his eyes and then he turned and walked away. She watched him trudge away and then she turned her attention back to the boy in agony next to her.

"Quinn" he said, trying to keep his voice even. "I'm so sorry Quinn, for everything..."

"Shhh" she replied, "I'm sorry too but we'll sort this out okay?" She smoothed his hair out of his face as he nodded. Suddenly, teachers and what looked like ambulance crew came pushing through the astonished crowd and began attending to Sam.

Will was there too and he was attempting to clear the area of curious students and get them to go to their homerooms. "You too, Quinn" he said to her as she was watching, now stood up, Sam.

"But... Sam..."

"You'll see him later. I'd love to let you go with him but they wouldn't let you anyway. C'mon"

Quinn reluctantly did what he said and walked away but with one last look in her boyfriend's direction.

Everything is so messed up, Quinn was thinking to herself as she drove to the hospital after first period to see Sam. She had no doubt in her mind that the fight had had something to do with her and Beth which meant that Sam was now aware of the situation. Another downer was that Puck was so sweet on the phone but now he was just being an idiot. Of course she didn't exactly know what had aggravated him but whatever it was it couldn't have been worth getting Sam hurt like that. She still was no closer to making her decision; in fact she'd say she was further away from making it. The only good thing to come out of this whole thing, she thought, was that her issue with Sam seemed to be sorted out.

Abruptly, her ringtone began to ring, her ringtone was her and Rachel singing which they had recorded at Rachel's house after school a few days ago. However, they hadn't gotten far into the song before bursting into laughter with each other. Quinn was smiling so much at the memory that she almost forgot to actually pick up her phone. Trying to carefully focus on her driving at the same time, Quinn looked at her cell and saw it was Puck calling so she declined the call; she couldn't face him yet.

Just a minute later, the phone rang again. Frustrated, Quinn looked at the screen and saw it was her mom so she declined that call to; she just couldn't deal with that right now either. As if it was possible for someone to get three calls from three different people in about three minutes, her phone rang again. Quinn looked again and seeing that this time it was Rachel she picked up.

"Hey Rach,"

"Hey Quinn, I heard what happened, are you okay? How's Sam?"

"Well I'm just on my way to see him now but I think it's probably broken, you should have seen the blood"

"Okay, well I just wanted to check you were okay which you seem to be?" Rachel said.

"Yeah, I'll be alright. Thank you Rachel, you're such a great friend"

"Well so are you. Look I need to go now but if you need anything just call okay?"

"Thanks and bye, Rachel."

"Bye, Quinn." Quinn hung up the phone and found herself driving into the hospital car park.


	10. Chapter 10

Quinn walked up to the reception desk at the hospital and waited her turn. The woman in front of her was having an in depth conversation about what seemed to her son's broken wrist. "I just don't understand why he is still here. It's been hours!" she was saying in a rather angry tone.

"Ma'am, with respect, the doctor wants him to stay overnight for observation. It's a complicated break"

"I don't care about that!" the woman shouted and at this point Quinn was starting to get slightly irritated. She wasn't usually an impatient person but it had been a long day and this woman was being slightly ridiculous.

Quinn waited for another minute or so while the argument continued in front of her but in the end she had had enough. "Excuse me" she began whilst tactfully edging her away past the fuming woman. Quinn placed her hands on the counter and began to speak to the receptionist.

"Sorry but could you tell me where Sam Evans' room is please?" For this, Quinn got a very irritated look from the woman. Looking relieved to have someone else to deal with, the receptionist happily talked to Quinn, getting her to fill out a form and leading her to a room down the corridor.

Just as they were coming to the room in question, the receptionist said, "Sorry about the wait sweetheart. It's just through here."

Quinn thanked her and as she slowly opened the door and peeked her head around it the receptionist walked off down the hallway; her shoes clicking on the white lino. Quinn walked into the bland room and shut the door behind her before walking over to Sam who was smiling at her.

"Sam. How is it, how are you?" she said, concern echoing in her delicate voice.

Sam let out a small, slightly forced, chuckle. "I'll be fine. Only a broken nose" he was sat on the edge of the white sheeted bed with his nose looking very swollen. "They say I can't go home until my mom comes or something stupid like that but she's at some job interview so here I am..."

Quinn nodded whilst sitting down beside him on the bed and they sat in silence for a few moments. It was she who broke the stillness of the air in the room. "Sam, why were you two fighting? I'm going to take a guess and say that Puck started it seeing as you're the one in hospital but why? I don't understand"

Sam was quiet for a minute or so and then he looked Quinn in the eye. He was distracted for a moment because it had been a while since he had done that; really looked into her eyes and he was reminded of how beautiful they really were. It was also in that moment that he realised how much he missed her and how much he wanted things to back to normal with her. Sam sighed and said, "Puck told me about Beth. About how they asked you if you wanted her back and all that-"

"So wait, you started the fight?" Quinn asked, confused now.

"Quinn, why didn't you tell me about Beth?"

"So you did start the fight?"

"Don't worry about that. Why didn't-" he was saying but was cut off by a frustrated Quinn.

"Oh I'm worrying about it. So you did start it. You punched him and he was only defending himself. I can't believe you" she looked at him for a moment and when he didn't reply she got frustrated. She let out a small laugh and shook her head, "This is ridiculous."

Just as she said this they both heard the door open. They looked up to see it was Puck who had walked in. Sam began muttering under his breath, seemingly very irritated by this other boy's presence. Puck seemed to have nothing on his skin indicating he was even in a fight; no bruises, nothing. Quinn was about to question why he was even here but she decided to drop it because she didn't have the energy to even care anymore.

Instead she just came out with what she really wanted to know. "Okay, who started this stupid fight?" However, she got no response from either of them. Quinn stood up and looked at both of them. "Will one of you just tell me what happened?" she said, her voice getting more and more frustrated as time went on.

Seeing that Quinn was getting very troubled over it, Sam decided to answer. "It was Puck. He just came and attacked me because... I don't even know wh-"

"That' bull!" Puck shouted, "He started sucker punching me after I told him... Urgh! This isn't fair, it wasn't me!"

Now Quinn was really confused. Everything going on in her mind was already messed up but they were just making it so much worse. She lent her head back and sighed an angry sigh. Sam, who desperately wanted to get Quinn back, decided his best way forward was to just tell the truth.

"Yes, okay," he began, "I threw the first punch. But it's not like he wouldn't have done pretty so-"

"Stop, just stop" she said, holding her hand up to him. She knew she had them both under her control now; neither one of them wanted to do anything to upset her anymore, she could tell by the way they were acting so quietly and innocently. She then turned her attention to Puck.

"Puck. What did you do? Did you say something to make him punch you?"

"I swear Quinn; I swear I didn't know you hadn't told him about… about Beth. I wouldn't have said anything if I hadn't have thought you'd told him, I just assumed" he said and he looked to the ground at the end of the sentence.

Quinn didn't say anything. She couldn't believe how childish they were both acting but most of all she was angry because she loved them both and they tried to hurt each other. She was just about ready to say goodbye and leave when Puck said something that really did not help the situation at all.

"I was asking Sam whether he knew whether you'd made up your mind. Have you? About Beth, I mean?"

Quinn could not believe what she was hearing. She could not believe he was actually asking her this _now. _"I cannot _deal _with this right now!" she shouted, clenching her fists.

Apparently Puck didn't know when to drop a subject because he continued, "Y'know I'm just saying 'cause you need to make your mind up soon" he said, in a matter of fact way.

"Back off. She's not your girl" Sam intruded wanting to look like the good guy in Quinn's eyes and reminding the room he was very much there.

Just then Quinn lost it. "I'm not anybodies girl!" she screamed prior to shoving past Puck and running out of the room. As she ran down the corridor and through the parking lot and into her car all her anger, her confusion, her frustration, her sadness, her disappointment ran ruthlessly down her face in her tears. And this time she didn't feel the tears coming to an end.

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><p>An hour or so later, Quinn found herself staring at the Berry's house just as she had a couple of weeks before. But this time she wasn't scared about what greeting she would get at the door and she hadn't come on a mission. This time she was just looking for comfort from a good friend. Although Quinn now knew Rachel's dads quite well, she didn't want them so see her upset so, just as a precaution in case they opened the door, she wiped the tears from her face and took in a big, but shaky, breath and knocked on the door.<p>

Subsequent to her knock she heard somebody coming to the door and then she heard her friend's voice. "Who's there?" she asked, making sure she wasn't opening the door to some stranger.

"It's just Quinn, Rach" Quinn replied.

Quinn then heard the latch on the door being unlocked, then the keys jangling as she unbolted it and finally the door opened. "Hi Quinn, can I get your opinion on… Quinn what's wrong?" she asked, her voice going from its usual tone to a more concerned one as she saw how sad the blonde in front of her looked. This triggered them again; the tears that is. They had only paused momentarily and now one slid down Quinn's cheek only as a warning for the ones that immediately followed.

Rachel grabbed her hand and pulled her into the house. And without a second thought, Rachel pulled Quinn into a hug and let her cry on her shoulder. "What happened?" she asked after a while and once Quinn had calmed down just slightly she told Rachel everything; what happened in the hospital, what triggered it and everything that was going on in her head.

While Quinn was talking they had made it into the living room and were sat on Rachel's couch. When she finished saying everything Quinn said, "What do you think I should do Rach? Do I say yes to get Beth back or no?"

Rachel seemed to consider this for a moment and then she replied. "I can't answer that one for you. But forget about Sam, forget about Puck, forget about your mom, what do _you_ want, Quinn?"

It was in that moment that Quinn knew exactly what she wanted. She had made up her mind. And because Rachel was the only person in her life that was helping her with anything right now, she leant over and hugged Rachel; a thank you for their friendship.

**Thank you so much to those who have added this story to their favourites/story alerts and have reviewed. Please continue to review; I very much value what you have to say.**

**Also, there is some major drama coming up in a few chapters time so hold tight.**


	11. Chapter 11

Quinn and Judy were just sitting down to dinner when Quinn's phone began to ring. She took a look at who the caller was and saw it was Sam. Deciding it was best to answer; Quinn looked up to her mother and used her eyes to plead. Judy was just about to object – she was very adamant that there one time together each day should not be interrupted by 'outsiders' – but before she could Quinn said; "I'll be really quick" and she accepted the call.

Once safely out of her mother's earshot she spoke to Sam on the other end of the line. "Sam. I have to be really quick because… well my mom,"

"Okay," he began and Quinn could hear the seriousness in his tone. She didn't like it when he was like this. This wasn't Sam. Sam was goofy and hilarious and made a joke out of anything but at the moment he was always serious. And Quinn did know that it was pretty much all her fault for having all these complications that just get dumped on people when they get to know her but she couldn't help wishing everything was like it used to be with Sam.

"Look Quinn. I'm sorry. I'm sorry for when I got pissed at you and… for when I punched Puck and when I said all those stupid things. It was wrong and I just want things to get back to normal with us." Sam paused, expectantly waiting for a response. Quinn knew she should feel relieved at the chance to go back to before but something settled in the depths of her stomach told her it just wasn't going to be the same.

But she went with her head, not her heart. "I'm sorry too, Sam. I… shouldn't have got angry and I should have told you about Beth in the first place. I never meant to hurt you"

"I know, I know. It's fine, Quinn. I understand now just please… please say we can go back to how we were." He paused, "and I love you, Quinn"

Quinn sighed and let the words slip off her lips. "I love you too" she replied, feeling the guilt in her words.

"Bye." She could almost hear the smile on his face.

"Bye..." she whispered before hanging up the phone. Quinn had just lied to her boyfriend. She did not feel right about getting back with him and she knew that her words about loving him were empty. But how could she have said anything else? She still cared about him. Quinn stood staring sombrely into space when she heard her mother call from the dining room.

"Quinnie!" So Quinn turned around and prepared herself to wear a façade that said; _everything is fine. I'm happy. _Isn't that what she'd been pretending for over a year now? Maybe everything _could_ go back to normal. She sat down across from her mother with thoughts clouding her mind about a big mistake she possibly just made and began to eat her casserole.

* * *

><p>Quinn hadn't told anybody that she'd made up her mind about Beth but she was about to. She and Rachel were walking to glee rehearsal together next day and Quinn was listening to her babble away about what her Dads had made her do last night or something like that. The blonde really was trying to be an active part in the conversation but she couldn't stop her mind from planning out what she was going to say to a certain someone within the next few minutes. That is, though, if a certain someone else wasn't present.<p>

To Quinn's upmost relief, Sam wasn't in glee club when they arrived but Puck was. He was in some sort of day dream whilst sat on a stool and strumming on a guitar and Quinn couldn't help noticing how good he looked. She squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head; an attempt to get thoughts about Puck out of her head. "Puck!" she said before she could get distracted again. Her looked up at her and smiled that beautiful and dopey smile she did not realise she loved that much until now. She had to stop herself getting distracted _again_.

"I need to talk to you," she said, closer to him now. He nodded, stood up, stood the guitar on a stand, held Quinn's shoulders, spun her around, gently sat her on the stool, bent down so he was just about eye level with her, put his hands on her knees and said, "go ahead."

Quinn smiled at him. And she carried on smiling as she said what she did because she knew it was right to tell him and she knew he would be supportive. "I'm keeping her. We're… we're getting our baby back." She said, grinning, and she put her arms out with her palms facing upwards.

"Really?" he questioned. Quinn nodded with the sides of her mouth upturned and she watched as Puck's face went from an expression of disbelieve then to happiness and excitement. He had on his face one of the biggest smiles she had ever seen him wear. "Really?" he repeated.

"Yes!"

Puck practically leapt up onto his feet and pulled her into a hug. "I'm so happy, Quinn. Thank you." He whispered into her ear as he wrapped his arms more tightly around her.

Unable and not wanting to wipe the smile of her face, Quinn whispered back. "Me too."

"She's coming home. Beth's coming home" Quinn could hear the pride in his voice and she felt so full of joy to be sharing this with him. Over his shoulder, she could see the other glee clubbers messing around on the other side of the choir room whilst waiting for Mr Schue to arrive. They all looked as though they were having a good time and, for once, Quinn didn't feel like the one who was feeling down. She was happy; truly happy.


	12. Chapter 12

**This chapter's not that great but to make up, I've written two chapters so I hope you enjoy :)**

The next few weeks went extremely slowly. Well that's what it felt like to Quinn anyway. After telling Puck about her decision to keep Beth, she told everybody else. She told Rachel, her mom and then Sam. Just the memory of telling Sam made her feel horrible.

She'd told him the day after first telling Puck and did it before class in the hallway at her locker. "Quinn," he had called whilst walking over to her. "Sorry I didn't call last night like I'd said I would, I got caught up with looking after my brother and sister."

"Oh, that's okay Sam" she had replied with a small smile on her face. Truth was, Quinn had forgotten all about his promise to call. After a few moments of awkward silence Quinn decided it was the time to tell him the news. "Sam, I've got something to tell you… about Beth." Quinn watched as all the glow drained out of him when she had said Beth's name. That's the only way she could describe it; it was like someone had poured him full of sadness and anger. He didn't say anything, though, so she just decided to carry on.

"I've decided that I'm going to keep her," she'd looked up at him nervously but his expression hadn't changed. He was just staying very still. "I'm going to get her in a few weeks…" Again he didn't say anything.

"Sam?" she said, looking into his eyes.

"I'm… happy for you Quinn" he had replied but there was nothing behind those words. She felt like he was holding himself back from saying, or doing, something he shouldn't. Suddenly, he pulled her in for a hug and she returned it.

And that was it. They'd gone their separate ways to first period and then carried on with life as normal. Well, not exactly normal. Quinn began watching Sam's behaviour for the next few weeks and she was beginning to realise something was really not right. He had a lot of sick days, he barely spoke when they were together and when he did it either lacked any emotion or it was just about how glad he was that they were back together. His kisses were empty and his hugs were stiff. She'd thought about telling him the truth about not loving him anymore but how could she do that now? With him in such a bad state. She couldn't hurt him even more.

The same day as telling Sam, she told the glee club. Everyone was happy for her. Santana made a couple of snarky comments but seemed genuinely happy for her, Mercedes had hugged her and Rachel had hugged her for the second time. Everything seemed great.

* * *

><p>A couple of weeks after the decision had been made, Quinn came home from Rachel's house to find someone there that she never thought she'd see her mother talking willingly to; Puck. She walked in the lounge to find them sat together drinking tea. <em>Tea?<em> Quinn had to stop herself from laughing.

"Um, Puck. Hi" she said, more than a little confused. "What are you, uh, doing here?"

"I invited him round Quinnie!" her mother interrupted, "We've got some important things to discuss." Judy stood up and walked to the dining room, expecting them to follow. Once she was gone, Quinn used a hushed tone to question Puck.

"Do you know-"

"I have no idea, she just called and told me to come" he replied and shrugged. Quinn laughed and took the tea from his hands and put it on the coffee table. She was finding everything so much funnier since deciding to get Beth back. Life was generally better.

Together they walked to the dining room and both took a seat across from Judy Fabray. "Now," she said in a much more formal tone than needed, "we need to talk about Beth's living arrangements and how this affects Noah."

Quinn could see Puck trying not to laugh out of the corner of her eye and she playfully kicked him under the table. Truthfully, she was finding the whole manner of the situation funny too, though she wasn't too sure why. She should be used to her mother's formality by now.

"Beth needs to live here" Judy said, matter of factly.

"I agree, Mrs Fabray" Puck said, managing to keep his face serious.

"But, Mom? He will be allowed around here like, all the time right? I mean, Beth is his too…" Quinn added, a little concerned that her mother was about to go crazy and tell Puck he wouldn't be allowed to see his daughter.

"Of course. Noah will always be welcome here" she replied, a smile on her face. For a while the three of them just sat in silence, not knowing what to say. Quinn was avoiding looking at Puck in fear that she would burst out laughing so they all just sat there until Quinn decided to speak up.

"Well, if that's all then I guess I'll show Puck out…."

"Quinn, don't be rude. His name is Noah. And yes, you show him out Quinn. It was very nice seeing you again Noah."

Quinn was going to object that, in fact, calling him Puck was not rude but she decided against it and led him out. At the door, they said their goodbyes and Puck placed a small kiss on her cheek before walking to his car.

Quinn and Puck had various meetings about Beth with the agency, Quinn and Judy went out shopping for a crib and pram, nappies, clothes, toys and everything else a one-year-old needs and Quinn found herself really looking forward to the day.

The night before the day her and Puck were due to travel to Perrysburg to collect Beth, Quinn was lying in bed when she got a text.

_See you tomorrow! _Quinn had wanted to reply to Puck but she fell asleep with her mobile in her hand, too exhausted from all the preparation.


	13. Chapter 13

"I can't believe we're doing this. Going to get Beth." Puck said and smiled at Quinn who was sat next to him. They were in Puck's car driving to Perrysburg. They were going as two teenagers but were going to leave as two parents; two proud parents. Quinn gave him a smile but continued to stare straight out at the road ahead, feeling sick to the stomach. _Is this what it feels like when excitement, nervousness sand worry get mixed up together?_

Puck picked up on her mood instantly and, whilst keeping on hand on the wheel, he intertwined his fingers on his other hand with hers. She tried to pull her hand away and she shook her head. She couldn't do this – she was with Sam.

But he gently squeezed her hand and said, "I just want to hold my baby mamas hand, is that so wrong?" And he felt her relax next to him. But Puck wasn't finished; he carried on talking in that caring tone he only used when he talked about Quinn or their family. "Do you remember last year, in the hospital, after Beth was born, and I told you I loved you? It's still true. I love you because we're going to get our baby back but I'd love you even if we weren't. I never stopped loving you Miss Quinn Fabray."

Quinn felt the tears in her eyes, she felt them threatening to come out. She hated how she broke down at everything, she just wanted to be strong. But she couldn't. She couldn't because Puck's words had dug right into her heart and she knew they were true, she could feel it in the way he said them. Quinn hadn't felt this way in so long; she hadn't felt truly loved by anyone. Not like this.

By now the tears were streaming down her face and Puck took one look at her, pulled the car over, shut off the engine and turned his body to face her. "Hey, hey, what's wrong?" he asked whilst stroking away the tears from her cheek.

Quinn watched, for a few moments, as the cars sped past and then she used the edge of her sleeve to dap under eyes. A shaky, hiccupping voice began to escape her. "What if I can't do it? I'm going to be a terrible mom. We shouldn't be doing this… I shouldn't be doing this." Quinn looked down, ashamed.

"Listen to me," Puck said to her whilst lifting her chin with his finger, "No-one, and I mean no-one, would make a better mom than you Quinn. I promise. And you've always got me right?"

Quinn nodded and stared into his caring, beautiful eyes. Before she knew what she was doing, she was leaning her head into his. And when their lips touched she could remember nothing feeling as good. During that kiss she felt loved, she felt safe and she felt happy. Puck's lips were so gentle but so forceful at the same time and when they broke apart she didn't want it to be ending.

With their faces just inches apart, Puck whispered something. "I love you." She gave him a small smile and he stroked her smooth hair.

"Okay?" he asked. She bit her bottom lip and nodded. She was okay now she had him. Puck saw the dried tears on her face but noticed she wasn't actually crying anymore. He placed a small kiss on her forehead and pulled the car out into the road again but the whole time he did not let go of hand.

As they drove, Quinn thought over what had just happened. She had never experienced something so magical in her life and now she had no doubts that she loved the guy sat next to her. He was everything she needed, everything she wanted.

They began to talk about other things as time went on and Quinn found herself laughing uncontrollable at some of the things he was saying. "Puck? she said, a smile still plastered on her face because of something he just said. "You do know you not allowed to stop where you did earlier right?"

"Yeah, I knew. But what was I supposed to do? You were crying, I had to do _something. _And besides, I'd say that kiss was worth breaking some parking law over."

"Well it was pretty hot," she admitted, smiling.

"There you go then."

For a while they drove in silence and it was getting pretty dark outside but they'd booked a hotel for they night and were going to get Beth the next day. When they drove by a sign for the adoption agency Puck felt a delicate squeeze on his hand. And just seconds later Quinn felt a reassuring squeeze on her hand.

* * *

><p>Quinn looked at all the numbers on the doors as they walked down the long hotel corridor. "The woman said we are number 208…" she mused whilst striding down the hall, seemingly unaffected by the moaning of the boy behind her. Puck was slumping behind carrying everything. Even the car seat which he couldn't understand why it couldn't be left in the car but Quinn said they needed to bring it so he did. Apparently Quinn could hear his groans behind her because she suddenly perked up with; "I thought you were meant to be my strong man?"<p>

"I am!" he said whilst standing up a little taller and hearing Quinn chuckle. Finally they reached the room which Quinn unlocked with the key which happened to be the only thing she was carrying. Upon entering the room, Puck dumped everything on the floor in the entrance and flexed his arms. For a moment they both just stood and stared at the double bed in front of them.

"I guess I'll sleep on the floor then." He offered, trying to be considerate. She smiled and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before dragging her bag to the bed. Quinn took a few things out of it and went into the en suite to take a shower.

While he waited, Puck wandered aimlessly around the room, opening and shutting draws, sliding the door of the wardrobe, staring out of the window. When she _still_ didn't come back, Puck was getting super bored so he got up from where he was sat on the bed to turn the TV on. Just as he was pressing the button, Quinn and a whole lot of steam came out of the bathroom. She was wearing nothing but a towel and she was seemingly unaware of the effect she was having on the boy stood just metres away. Quinn grabbed some clothes from her duffel bag and turned to face Puck.

"Close your eyes." she ordered. She watched as he put his hands over his eyes and mock-peeked between his fingers. She laughed and playfully hit him.

"Now close your eyes" she said again and this time he really did. She let the towel fall to the floor and slipped into her pyjamas. Once she was done she told him he could open his eyes and she crawled into bed.

"Goodnight Quinn Fabray" Puck said.

"Goodnight Noah Puckerman"

Puck walked over to the light switch and turned it off. The room was almost completely dark. Quinn could faintly see Puck's shadowy figure and he walked back over to his 'bed' on the floor. Puck peeled his shirt off and wriggled his jeans off before lying down. Normally he slept completely naked but he thought he'd be considerate and leave his boxers on just for that night.

The room was quiet for a few minutes except from the sound of Quinn's delicate breathing and Puck's attempt to get comfy. They both knew the other wasn't asleep.

"I'm proud of you." Puck said out of the blue. Quinn smiled into the darkness and felt her face glowing with the happiness of being here with Puck.

After a few more minutes of silence, Quinn spoke up. "Puck?" she asked, unsure of whether he was still awake or not.

"Yeah" he replied.

"Will you lie with me?" she asked with her soft voice. Quinn heard the movement as he got up out of his bed and she then felt his warmth as he climbed into hers. He lay down and wrapped his strong, protective arms around her. And that is how they stayed. Neither of them said anything to each other. They didn't need to; they knew they had each other and that was all they needed.

**Please review :)**


	14. Chapter 14

**Sorry it has been such a long, long time since my last update. This chapter has been half finished for a long time and I just haven't got round to it until now. Hopefully, though, the updates are going to come quicker now all my exams are out of the way but we'll see.**

** I realise that all the adoption stuff is very far from what actually happens but I have no idea about that sort of thing so everything I've written about adoption is just a stab in the dark. **

It was eight in the morning and Quinn and Puck had gone into a café to grab some breakfast before their appointment at nine when they would _finally_ get to see their daughter and take her home. They had both awoken from the sound of the rain pounding on the windows of the hotel and an hour on it was still pouring. Quinn hated rain but as she sat and moved her food around her plate, it wasn't the disappointing weather causing her to become very quiet but the nervousness that had made its home in her stomach the moment she woke up. Of course she was excited but that didn't mean she wasn't scared to death. _What if Beth doesn't like me when we meet?_ And that was only short term.

Puck knew she was feeling nervous and, truthfully, he was too. He knew that when they got there she would be fine though so he was letting her be for the moment. But he wasn't letting her untouched food be. "Are you gonna eat that or..?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

Quinn laughed and pushed her plate towards him. "Be my guest." Puck devoured the food and as Quinn watched she knew that Beth was a lucky girl because she was going to have a father as amazing and caring as him.

"What are you looking at?" he asked, his mouth still full of food.

"Nothing, nothing," she replied whilst waving her hand and smiling at him, "just eat your food."

For a while they just sat while Puck ate and then they talked about nothing much until it was time to go. Puck paid and they made their way out into the rain.

* * *

><p>Quinn opened the car door and immediately slammed it shut again. "I can't do this" she mumbled as she stared at the adoption centre across the parking lot where they were now parked.<p>

"Yes you can, Quinn. We're here together; I'm with you every step of the way. And even if I wasn't here you would still be fine because Beth is going to _love_ you" he paused and smiled at her, "now come on." He opened his door and ran around the back of the car to open Quinn's. He opened her door and took her hand as she stepped out into the rain. Together they ran to the building with Quinn wearing Puck's jacket on her head to stop her hair getting wet. By the time they made it to the building they were soaked through and laughing with each other.

Quinn took the jacket off her head and smoothed her hair as they walked through the automatic doors which yawned open as they approached. They were greeted with instant warmth in the reception area; a stark contrast to the wet and cold outside. Quinn shrugged off her coat and placed it over her arm as they walked up to the reception desk.

"Quinn Fabray," she informed the woman, "and Noah Puckerman." They were told to take a seat of which they had many a choice. The waiting room was completely empty. Quinn sunk into one of the seats and Puck did the same. While they waited to be called, Quinn text Rachel telling her that is was nearly time. As soon as she sent the message she received one. _Surely Rachel couldn't have text back that soon,_ Quinn thought but she soon discovered it was her mother.

"Um, Puck?" Quinn asked the boy next to her who was playing some army game on his phone. "My mom wants to know if you want to stay for dinner."

"Yeah, sure" he replied, still engrossed in his game. Just as Quinn was about to text Judy back, they both looked up at the sound of their names being called. _This is it. _Quinn thought. _This is what I've been preparing for all this time. From now on, I'm not a kid, I'm a _mom_. _

Grabbing Puck's hand, she arose from her seat and followed the man who had called their names down a corridor. While they walked Puck leant his head down and whispered in her ear. "Ready?" She bit her lip, nodded her head and squeezed his hand tighter. She could feel her anxiousness and excitement building up inside her; she didn't think she had ever felt this nervous about anything before. Not even giving birth. All they could hear as they walked down that corridor – a corridor which seemed to go on for eternity – was the squeak of Quinn and Puck's shoes on the lino because of the wet from the rain and the click of the man's shoes.

Finally they made it to the room. The man opened the door for them and allowed them to enter. And there she was; Beth. Quinn stared at this beautiful, glowing, little girl before her and felt a hole within her become filled. She felt every ounce of her love go out to this child before her and she realised what she had been missing for the last fourteen months; the mistake she had made when she gave Beth up.

Suddenly, a different woman's voice brought her back to reality. Quinn hadn't even noticed the woman who had Beth sat on her lap, all she had seen was the little girl. Her little girl.

"Go ahead, hold her" the woman said, standing up and walking towards Quinn. Quinn looked at Puck and he smiled at her then let her hand go. Quinn outstretched her arms and took Beth from the woman and settled her on her hip. "Hello Beth," she said, stroking her blonde, tiny curls, "Mommy's here now. And this is your Daddy" she said whilst turning to Puck. Puck grinned proudly and touched Beth's hair then kissed her forehead.

As Quinn watched Puck make his first contact with his child, she knew she had made the right decision in getting Beth back. Everything in the world felt right now; she felt complete.

The next hour or so was spent finalising the adoption and whilst that was happening Beth was passed between the new parents and the floor where she played with toys that had been set out for her. For the whole time they were in there, Quinn couldn't keep the smile that had appeared off her face. She was happier than she could ever remember and she was relieved because Beth hadn't cried when Quinn first held her. She felt as though that had made a good start.

"Just one more signature, Miss Fabray and one for you, Mr Puckerman and then we are done here" the man who had initially called them in handed Quinn the pen and pointed to the correct point at which to sign. "All you need to do is sign here and this beautiful little girl is yours."

Without any hesitation, Quinn bent over and signed on the line before handing the pen to Puck and watching him do the same. That was it. Beth was now theirs and they could now take her home and raise her as their own. Quinn couldn't stop the ecstatic grin that grew on her face as the reality dawned on her.

Once Puck had handed the pen back to the man he put his arm around Quinn and pulled her in to his chest. "We did it, Q. She's all ours." She smiled, unable and not wanting to contain her happiness, whilst she savoured the feeling of being in his embrace. She felt safe there, and wanted, and loved. It was one of the few places she felt she truly belonged.

After a few moments they broke away from each other and Quinn bent down to wear their daughter was playing on the floor. "It's time to go home, honey" she said, smiling. Beth returned her smile and held up a toy car for Quinn to see. The blonde laughed and played with the car with Beth for a few moments whilst making vroom noises. This amused Beth greatly and she outstretched her tiny arms to her new mom; a woman she was already growing to love. She was lifted into those loving arms and the family walked out the room together, smiles on each of their faces.

** Thank you to everyone who has added this to their story alerts and favourites and for the reviews. It really does mean a lot. Please continue to review, it is appreciated :) **


	15. Chapter 15

"Finally" Quinn muttered to herself as she looked down at Beth who was, at last, asleep in the crib. It was Beth's first night at home and her mother had been trying to get her to sleep for the last two hours. As worn out as Quinn was, she couldn't help smiling down at the little girl engrossed in sleep. She watched her little chest rise up and down and the peacefulness on her face. Quinn would stand there all night just admiring her little girl if she didn't need the sleep herself.

Suddenly, the sound of her mobile ringing jolted her out of her faze. As quietly and as quickly as she could, Quinn ran out of Beth's room as to not wake her up in fear that she would never get back to sleep.

"Hello?" she said, quietly into the phone once she had made it safely out the room.

"Hi, Quinn. It's Rachel"

"Hey Rach, how are you?" Quinn replied, a little louder now she was further down the landing.

"I'm fine. But I was calling to hear about you, how is everything with your current situation?

"It's amazing. She's amazing. She is so beautiful and perfect and I love her. I love her so much." Quinn replied, smiling even though Rachel could not see her. Quinn had been doing a lot of that the whole day; she just couldn't keep the grin off her face. A nice change from the tears.

"That's wonderful news, Quinn! I very much look forward to meeting this little one. How is she settling in?"

"She seems to be doing okay. I mean, it's a big change for her so she is bound to be unsettled for a while I suppose. There were a few tears on the drive home but we're fine." Quinn thought back to the journey home.

_"Shhh, it's okay honey. We'll be home soon" Quinn said, trying to comfort a screaming Beth in the car seat next to her. Quinn was sat in the back with Beth; an attempt to try and make her feel more settled, whilst Puck drove. Despite Quinn's upmost attempts, Beth was insistent on crying as loud as her tiny lungs would allow her. _

_ She turned Puck in the front. "I've tried _everything. _Why won't she stop crying?"_

_ "I don't know" he shrugged. "Maybe she'll just get tired from all the screaming and fall asleep"_

_ Quinn felt like bursting into tears herself. She felt helpless. But instead of falling apart at the first sign of things getting tough, she held it together and told herself that this is what she signed herself up for. "Yeah, hopefully" she replied, stroking Beth's hand while her little legs kicked around in her crying state. _

"Well I'm pleased to hear you're doing okay" Rachel responded.

"Yeah, we're great. Really great" Quinn tried to sound as optimistic as she could but the truth was; she was exhausted. Beth never did fall asleep on the journey home. In fact, she screamed the whole journey back and the whole time they'd been home. This was the first bit of quiet Quinn had experienced since getting in the car earlier in the morning.

The two friends said their goodbyes and after Quinn had hung up she stood looking aimlessly around. What was she supposed to do now? She thought about going downstairs but that would mean leaving Beth alone upstairs and Quinn didn't feel like she could do that; at least not yet. She grabbed a book from the book shelf and tiptoed into Beth's bedroom and settled herself down on the floor next to the crib after peering in to check all was okay.

Just as she was about to crack open her book, the screen on her phone lit up. It was from Puck asking how Beth was.

'_She's sound asleep' _she replied and opened her book to begin reading.

* * *

><p>At the sound of crying Quinn jolted awake. She had fallen asleep next to Beth's crib and it was now almost completely pitch black. It took her a moment to remember why she had been asleep whilst sat on the floor and where the crying was coming from. As soon as she remembered and was back to reality, though, she jumped up and moved to the crib, desperate for Beth to stop crying. It wasn't so much that the crying was annoying her or that it was keeping her awake; it was that she wanted to make sure her daughter was okay and to make everything better for her.<p>

Quinn could just about see Beth in the darkness that engulfed the room so, without second thought; she reached in the crib and picked the screaming bundle up. She held Beth and walked up and down the room, stroking her back and trying to get her to relax.

"What's wrong, sweetie?" she said, gently bouncing her up and down. "Shhhhhhh, it's okay."

For the good part of half an hour Beth screamed, cried, struggled, kicked and flailed. All the while Quinn held her daughter and did all she could to comfort her. Eventually, fatigue overtook Beth and she let her head rest on Quinn's shoulder. All that could be heard from the little girl, as her eyelids drooped closed, were delicate sniffles and the tiny breaths she was taking.

After what felt like an eternity, Beth fell into a peaceful sleep in her mother's arms. Quinn smiled at her and made her way over to where the crib was. Before putting her down, Quinn planted a small kiss on her daughter's head. "Sleep tight, baby. I love you." As gently as she could she laid Beth down before wiping away a stray tear that was still on her small cheek.

Quinn got down on the floor and led down, using her jumper as a pillow; she couldn't leave Beth. She had to be there if her baby woke up again. Just like the sleep had taken Beth, it soon took Quinn who was there for whenever Beth needed her next.

In fact, the next time Beth needed was two hours later. Then nearly every hour after that until the morning. But each time Quinn awoke to hear crying she would get up and hold Beth until she fell asleep once more. She wasn't even thinking about how tired she was herself, she was only thinking about Beth.


End file.
